Fall 2019 Community Conversations

Intersectionality at 30

October 28, 2019

Our first conversation discussed the importance of intersectionality and ways to understand this term in relation to oppression, privilege, and identities. Kimberlé Crenshaw coined the term “intersectionality” in her 1989 article, “Demarginalizing the Intersection of Race and Sex: A Black Feminist Critique of Antidiscrimination Doctrine, Feminist Theory and Antiracist Politics.” In our October dije Community Conversation, we honored the 30th anniversary of intersectionality and discussed how we can adopt it as a framework to guide our work at the Marsal Family School of Education. The discussion was facilitated by SOE doctoral students, Christina Morton (CSHPE) and Ebony Perouse-Harvey (ES).

Suggested Reading:

• Crenshaw, K. (1989). Demarginalizing the intersection of race and sex: A Black feminist critique of antidiscrimination doctrine, feminist theory, and antiracist politics. The University of Chicago Legal Forum, (1), 139–167. doi: 10.4324/9780429500480-5 
• Crenshaw, K. (1991). “Mapping the margins: Intersectionality, identity politics, and violence against women of color.” Stanford Law Review, 43(6): 1241-1299.           
• Hill Collins, P. (2017). “The difference that power makes: Intersectionality and participatory democracy.” Investigaciones feministas, 8, 21-41.
• Patricia Hill Collins and Silma Bilge (2016). Intersectionality. Cambridge, UK, Polity Press. 
• TED Talk by Kimberlé Crenshaw, "The Urgency of Intersectionality."
• The City Podcast

Doing the Work Our Souls Must Have: Towards an Anti-Racist Praxis

November 20, 2019

Womanist and ethicist, Dr. Katie Geneva Cannon, shared that unlearning racism must become the “work our souls must have.” In this community conversation, we discussed the difference between being “not racist” and being “anti-racist,” we expanded our understanding of our own identities, and we sought to incorporate a more reflexive praxis into our everyday encounters against racism. The goal of this community conversation was to equip participants with tools to engage in anti-racist practice in education. Participants reflected on personal experiences with race and racism, read an excerpt from Ibram X Kendi’s book How to Be an Anti-Racist, and discussed actionable steps to employ an anti-racist practice in the SOE. This discussion was facilitated by David Humphrey, SOE’s Chief Diversity Officer, and Maren Oberman, Director of the Educational Leadership and Policy.

Suggested Reading:

• Kendi, I. X. (2019). How To Be an Antiracist. New York: Random House.